A review by faithl
Learning to Swear in America by Katie Kennedy

4.0

'Learning to Swear in America' is an unexpected pleasure to read! An intelligent, endearingly naive Russian boy tries to save the world through the power of mathematics and science is just the kind of character to pick you from a dreary day/month/year. Add an adorable story of first love, this novel was both original and entertaining.

Despite the fact that I understood less than half of the science mentioned in the story, I still loved reading about it. The research to ensure that the book felt genuine was successful in shaping the whole end-of-the-world situation. However, the book still retained a lot of its lightness due to Yuri's adorable personality. His high intelligence is accompanied with the most endearing lack of self-awareness - most literally, the epitome of the cute nerd. Hence, the novel was such a delight to read since Yuri's pure innocence amongst the arrogance of adults and the face of impending doom highlighted how underrated naivety can be. Kennedy did a great job of characterising this trait without it being too childish or ignorant but simply sweet.

Kennedy also did a great job with the romance. A lot of YA romances are overwhelmed with passion and desperation however this one was just really chill. I didn't feel frustrated or swept away in its development but instead calm. Their relationship was a great combination of aloofness, spontaneity but also sense, despite Dove being a very unique and boisterous character. At first glance, she is the typical manic pixie girl we're all tired of seeing but as the story continues, she surpasses this archetype. She voices her distaste for her school environment, she doesn't revel in being tortured or cynical but tries her very best to just be a kind, good person without being basic. This was probably the best part of the novel - even amongst the very high chance of a whole city being decimated by an asteroid, her and Yuri still remain calm, kind and collected. A book like this could've easily been too fast-paced, emotional and distressed but instead, was optimistic.

All in all, 'Learning to Swear in America' is a refreshing book that goes beyond the archetypes and habits of the Young Adult Genre. It focuses on a hopeful view of the world and humanity, revelling in the beauty of simply being alive and breathing.